Archeologists wiped the sweat off their brows as they dig up artifacts in a series crumbling monoliths. Some archaeologists are searching the dirt while others are busy cataloging the latest findings. These artifacts will help these historians piece together what life was like in the abstruse city they’re trying to excavate. What the archaeologist are trying to excavate is an ancient city lying abandoned in the remote Indus River Valley of India. It pertains a sense of eerie silence, accumulated over the centuries. Even the city’s name, Mohenjo-daro, gives you a feeling of spookiness...it means “Mound of the Dead.” Being one of the largest settlements of the Indus Valley civilization, this antiquated city was one of the earliest urban settlements (existing around the time of Egypt and Mesopotamia). However, for anonymous reasons, it was deserted in the early 19th century BC, along with the rest of the civilization. From then on, no evidence was left of the city until archaeologists discovered it in 1922. Surprisingly, this site was significantly well preserved. Right now though, sadly, it is being exposed to the hazards of erosion and improper restoration. So, why did people abandon this city just when the civilization was at it’s height? What happened to this city? What was life like here? After careful study, archeologists have pieced together what life was like in Mohenjo Daro.Technology Mohenjo Daro is a technologically advanced civilization of it’s time. The layout of the streets of Mohenjo Daro is similar to that of a modern city, criss-crossing street intersections that form some sort of a grid. Evidence left behind also suggest advanced heating, ventilation, and insulation. Buildings were designed in a way so one room can be kept cool while the other insulates all the heat. Mohenjo Daro homes even had bathing rooms that may have even provided heated water. Archeologists also found a remarkable number of structures designed for the public, like the great bath. Recent excavations reveal that the residents of Mohenjo Daro even had a sewer system, probably the first in the world. With the subterranean sewer system and elaborate drainage system, water could be drained from baths and residents didn’t have to deal with emptying their waste from pots (used as toilets) everyday. As a result of all this luxury, Mohenjo-Daro residents had extremely warm and comforting homes to live in. Not to mention that they enjoyed the bliss of not having to empty the pot everyday of human waste! Though advanced to the point to have a sewer system and insulated homes, some aspects of Mohenjo-Daro was still very primitive compared to other civilizations. For example, when archeologists were excavating the city, they stumbled across the fact that Mohenjo-Daro didn’t seem to have a religion. Now this is baffling. The city had no temples, palaces,shrines, whatsoever. People weren’t even sure if they had a proper government system!!! Probably the most puzzling trait of these ruins is the fact that it has sophisticated things like a sewage system and insulated homes, yet the residents there seemed so primitive that they don’t even have an established religion or government system.

Art Like every other ancient civilization, Mohenjo-Darans expressed themselves through art. There are thousands upon thousands of artisan shops in Mohenjodaro's separated workshop section. Archeologists cataloged countless shards of pottery, statues, gold jewelry, scales, weights and even stamps. Since paper hasn’t been invented yet, the people of Mohenjo Daro wrote in clay tablets, for with mostly to make stamps. Most of the art Mohenjodaro’s artists created are surprisingly well preserved. These valuable antiques gives archeologists an incite into the past, like a time traveling machine. Among the vast pile of relics, a few have risen to be well known artifacts. One of the most famous statues found in Mohenjo Daro is the so-called “ Dancing Girl.” This bronze statue is about 2 centimeters tall and some 4.500 years old. The statue was originally carved using a lost method so wax could be coated onto it in a certain way. As a result of this, the bronze statue is still as smooth as glass after thousands of years. Found by British archaeologist Mortimer Wheeler, he often described that this was his favorite statuette in his art collection. Wheeler described the “ Dancing Girl” as “a vivid impression of the young ... girl, her hand on her hip in a half-impudent posture, and legs slightly forward as she beats time to the music with her legs and feet... (from archeology.about.com). ” Without a doubt, this statue is probably the most prized and valuable piece of artwork in Mortimer’s collection. In addition to the dancing girl, another famous soapstone sculpture unearthed at Mohenjo Daro was the “Priest-King.” Discovered in 1927, the statue depicts a seated male figure, arms missing. This figure was found inside an unusual building full of crumbling bricks and unusual markings on the walls. Although there was no evidence that priest and kings ever existed in Mohenjo Daro, archaeologists still dubbed this figure the “Priest-King.” This peculiar sculpture is 17.5 cm tall; all while depicted an unusual bearded man who has a fillet around head. Descending from his shoulders is a long stone cloak with trefoil decor carved into it. Attached the statues’ broken arm is a thick armband. The statue might’ve represented a high status because of the number of jewelry and piercings carved into this figure. To this day, it sits in a glass case observing the modern humans visiting the National Museum of Paris.Destruction TheoriesOf course, one of the most common speculations to abandoned cities is that people moved away due to population overgrowth. Since it’s an urban city, there’s bound to be at least 10,000 people living within it’s protective wall at it’s height. The bigger apopulation gets, the more resources will have to be spent to support the population. This includes food, water, and shelter. As Mohenjo Daro population got bigger, it is very likely that the farmers just couldn’t grow enough food for the population. Starvation, added with irregular floodings and climate changes, caused people to migrate out of the city and settle somewhere else along the river. Though a few believe it was likely, there are some historians who suspect Mohenjo Daro was actually destroyed by an atomic bomb set off by extraterrestrials. This idea may sound off the hook, but archaeologists recently found startling new evidence that support this new theory. First, as archaeologists examined that cobblestone streets of Mohenjo Daro, they discovered that all the almost all the stones in the city have been turned into glass. This can only happened when stones are melted under extreme heat and pressure. Skeletons have also been discovered in streets and homes with high fluctuations in radiations, far above those of normal level. Abnormal radiation levels have also been detected around the area. The positions of the skeletons also brings of some questions. Most of the skeletons with in a face down position, suggesting a sudden but painful death. Ancient Indian texts state that despite the fact Mohenjo Daro is a really prosperous and advanced city, it was destroyed in flashes of light and great balls of fire. Smoke turned the skies black and there were windstorms. This is the exact effect of an atomic bomb releasing it’s utter wrath. Ancient texts also describe that the survivors of Mohenjodaro's destruction experienced hair loss, nail loss, etc. These are the biological aftermaths of exposure to extreme radiation. Clearly, the theory of an atomic bomb being dropped on Mohenjo Daro doesn’t seem so far fetched.

From the Great Bath to regular homes, and from its universities to the underground sewage system, Mohenjo Daro holds a mystery wherever you turn. But, the puzzlement doesn’t end here. Archeologists are still trying to answer questions like why was Mohenjo Daro abandoned? Why wasn’t there any temple, palaces, or shrines there? Clearly, it will be a very long time before historians unravel theses questions. For the meantime, we will just have to keep digging for evidence.

The ScribeTips is a new section that allows all website viewers to be able to learn the designs and our strategies to different types of writing. Over time we will add more tips for writers to learn. This section is focused on giving the viewer a strong idea of the diversity of writing. We will also express our own strategies and opinions to improving your writing. Explore our tips for young writers.

uScribe's new tool, the article finder, helps visitors know how to look for articles they want to read. Now visitors will be able to not just explore all of our articles, but find it easily and without hesitation. You are able to watch the slideshow and if you would like to read the article, just click on the picture. Below the slideshow we have short summaries on most the articles so you may also read those and click on the title to access the full article. Please try out this new tool and contact us for questions or comments.

Advanced Articles

uScribe is proud to present the advanced articles sections. Our advanced articles are focused on issues and interesting things around the world. Sometimes we may do debates and we might try to persuade you to believe various opinions. Our advanced articles consists mainly of persuasive articles and why the topics you write about is important. We try to make readers really think about what we write. Feel free to scroll down and explore our advanced articles. If you would like to submit an advanced article, please proceed to the "contact us" page.

Author

Practice, practice, practice and you'll be a better writer than you can imagine.